


Winter Hike

by ffure21



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, Fluff, jaspis - Freeform, with a tiny bit of Angst and Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-14
Updated: 2015-12-14
Packaged: 2018-05-06 17:53:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5426285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ffure21/pseuds/ffure21
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Never ask Jasper and Lapis to go to the grocery together, let alone partner them up.</p><p>For my SU New Year's Exchange - to Ilariamoonie.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Winter Hike

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Adelocosa](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Adelocosa/gifts).



> Happy Holidays to the reader(s)!! Sit back, and I hope you enjoy this one.
> 
> //Terribly sorry if they're OOC.

“So, how’s the ‘make out’ session?”

Lapis shot an exasperated scowl at Jasper, or as exasperated as she can get with her tongue out and stuck on a freezing pole.

“J-Jush geth me outh of heel!“ Lapis rambled, trying to pull back her tongue for the _nth_ time that evening, and failing for the _nth_ time also.

Jasper grinned, eyes crinkling with mischief and amusement. “Woah, woah, woah. Hang on and let me get a picture first.” Lapis’ eyes widened when she heard this, the orange Gem oblivious about it as she drops the plastic bags she’s been holding and pulls the phone Steven had lent them earlier. “Now how do you open the camera again…” She mumbles to herself more than asking the blue Gem currently in dilemma.

“I s-shwear if you don’t s-sthop that-“ Too late. A flash had emitted from the back of the phone, followed by the sounds of button being pressed, and the _ting_ of successfully sending a message.

“You were you saying?” Jasper said while slipping the phone back on her pocket, feigning innocence and crossing her arms over her chest.

“I’m going t-tho kill you.” Lapis glowers at the orange Gem.

“But then no one’s going to help you.” Jasper smirks, then frowns as she continues, “Why are you still wearing that?” She points at the blue halter crop top and long skirt Lapis had been wearing since way back. “Didn’t the kid gave you some anti-cold armor?”

“I-I don’t geth cold. And i-ith’th cald a ‘sweatha’.” She hugs her arms while her back continues to bend to the same level where tongue was stuck.

Jasper sighs. She unzips the parka she’s been wearing and drapes it over Lapis’ trembling form, revealing the beige turtleneck sweater underneath. “If you’re gonna lie, at least make it believable. You’ve been chattering ever since I found you.”

Though grateful at the act, Lapis said nothing and pulls the coat closer to her body. The warmth of the garment was pulling her eyelids down, and she wanted to surrender herself to sleep. After all, she’s been chastising herself all this time of how bad of an idea it was, but she still bit at the orange Gem’s dare.

 

* * *

_Not too long ago…_

 

_Snow was starting to grace over Beach City. It was also Lapis and Jasper’s first time to experience one after long being stuck in the abyss. Steven lectured them all he can impart about snow and winter, and a moment later Pearl had asked the two of them to go to the grocery. (Why? Just ask Pearl.)_

_On their way to the store, the snow had just started to fall, and Lapis thought of attempting to control it since Steven had said that it was also water, albeit in a more solid state._

_What better chance to do it when you have your perfect target walking right in front of you._

_Lapis smirks at her thought, silently praising herself, before closing her eyes to concentrate at the falling pellets. Inhaling deeply, she opens one palm and wills the snow to collect on top of it._

_Jasper just kept on walking, grumbling all to herself (something about being ordered by a Pearl and having a brat with her) and didn’t realize that she had left the blue Gem behind. She didn’t see the pole she was closing in either, and had-_ THUNK _\- walked herself into it._

 _Lapis’ concentration was broken when she heard the sound of collision and reflexively drops the snow that had_ actually _answered her call; just in time to see Jasper tugging at something in desperation. She jogs to the burly Gem and nearly trips for laughing._

_“H-how’s the…make out session?” Lapis said in between snorts and giggles, remembering the phrase she had heard Amethyst used once and explained to her._

_“F-Fhath up!” Jasper growls as best as she can thanks to her tongue getting stuck on the pole she had just run into. Of all that could’ve seen her stunt, it just had to be her. “Get me out of heel!”_

_“Now, now. Why don’t we record this glorious moment of the once great Quartz warrior~” Lapis teased in a singsong voice. She dugs on the pockets of Jasper’s parka, and whips out the phone Steven had lent them for their trip._

_“W-Waith! No-“ Jasper closed her eyes when a blinding light had gone off._

_Lapis fumbles with the phone, brows furrowed, and a soft_ ting _rung from the phone. A millisecond later and the phone ringed again. “Steven’s worried.” The blue Gem said addressing the orange Gem, not looking up from the phone._

_“Ugh! Ashk him how do I geth off flom thith thing!”_

_“I don’t have to. It’s water, I can control it.” Lapis lied; Steven had replied how to get her off, but Lapis wanted to savor this moment for a little longer._

_“You do?!”_

_“Maybe.” Jasper groans. When Lapis had her fill, she told the orange Gem, “Breath on it.”_

_Jasper look at her with one eyebrow raised, “Gems don’th blith.”_

_Lapis scoffs. “Gems don’t_ need _to breath, but we can still exhale right? You need to heat up where you’re stuck if you want to unstick yourself.”_

_Jasper didn’t want to believe her, thinking it’s just a prank to make her a fool, but she didn’t have anything else to try and they were on an errand after all. She puffed hot breaths in rapid succession until she could no longer feel the coldness of the metal from her tongue._

_“See, it worked! That wasn’t so bad.” The slim Gem smirked._

_Jasper assessed her tongue, and when she feels it’s okay to talk, she said, “Have you ever got your tongue stuck on ice?”_

_“No. And I don’t have any plans to.”_

_“Then I dare you to stick yours.”_

_“What?!” Lapis narrows her eyes at Jasper. “Why should I listen to you?”_

_“If you said it’s not that bad, then that only leaves that it’s an easy task for you. You just said that it’s made of water and_ you _can control water,” Jasper places her hands on her hips and bends down on eye-level with Lapis, “Or was that just a little lie to trick me?” Jasper bares her fang like a tiger sizing up her prey._

_Lapis contemplates; she knows it’s bad to bite whatever the orange Gem baits out, she’s not even sure if she can control ice, but she can’t stand being called a liar and backing out from a challenge; the orange Gem would remind her for the rest of her life. She draws a quick breath in and said, “You’re on.”_

 

* * *

Present…

 

 _“…ke up…ake…up…wake up…”_ She opens her eyes, something she didn’t noticed had been closed, and she’s met with white haziness. She uses the back of her hands to scrub away whatever nestled on her eyes, and the massive Gem’s face enters her view as it looms over her.

 _“_ Jasper!” Lapis cries in surprise and a little wash of relief.

“First you passed out on me and now you’re shouting at me as soon as you regained conscious. What did I ever do to you?” Jasper said, mild irritation traced on her tone.

“Sorry…” Lapis stifled a giggle and mumbles to herself. “Wait, ‘passed out’? When did I passed out?”

Jasper scoffs. “Don’t you remember- never mind, you passed out after I placed that thing on you right now.”

Lapis checks herself; the same olive parka Jasper wore earlier is currently draped over her, her body pressed against the orange Gem’s chest, and she feels one arm cupping her legs up and another supporting her back, which causes her azure cheeks to deepen in hue.

The warmth emanating from having physical contact with Jasper’s body was getting comfortable. Once a terrifying savage build, now radiates comfort and protection if only just this moment. Returning to Slumber Land was proving to be a difficult choice to deny anymore, Lapis thinks.

Jasper noticed that Lapis was succumbing to drowsiness once more and tries to rouse her. “Don’t you _dare_ sleep on me again.” She warns, getting annoyed as she could, but couldn’t muster more anger for the life of her; Lapis’ eyelids in an ebb and flow motion to stay awake, her head bobs at every step Jasper takes, and the weak- but factual- feeling that the slim Gem presses herself more and more against her weakens the fire of violence Homeworld's dogma had helped molded inside her, and now ignites a refreshing gentle flame, albeit shy and new to the world it shares its warm with. She finds that looking at the smaller Gem somewhat overwhelms her senses; it causes the gear in her mind to grind at irreversible speeds, her muscles tense up as she tries not to disturb her as if she were a fallen snow surviving the harsh, summer mornings. She averts her gaze from the water Gem and focuses on their trek back to home.

“How did you…get me off from the pole…” Lapis mumbles and it confused the Jasper for a second if she was talking in her sleep or to her.

“I doused your tongue with hot water. It took longer to find one, but I did find one.”

“How did you…”

“I checked the phone,” Jasper stares into Lapis’ eyes, uneasiness lingering around the latter’s half-lidded eyes, “Turns out the kid had sent an instruction on how to unstick yourself. Why didn’t you use it?”

It wasn’t resent that’s alive in her question, but rather genuine concern. Jasper was asking her why she _didn’t use it to save herself_ , rather than ask why she _didn’t tell her about it_. Lapis swallows the lump that had formed in her throat with difficulty.

“Hey, at least the breathing works.” Lapis attempts to change the subject.

“It worked for me but not for you.” It failed.

“I didn’t say anything about it not working for me.” The lethargy enveloping the blue Gem had vanished.

“It took me a long time to get some stuff at the ‘grocery’, and it definitely took a long time to travel to and from the pole you were stuck on. And also I got lost…but you could’ve at least followed me or returned to the kid’s base.”

Lapis didn’t say anything. Checkmate.

With a sigh, Lapis averts her gaze from the orange Gem and said, “I tried to breathe on it, but it only caused more ice to form. I can’t manipulate the ice- no,” she shook her head, “I couldn’t manipulate the ice properly. I tried to make it go away, but all it did was to call more ice to form around me. I almost panicked, you know? It’s the first time my ability backfired on me…”

Jasper listened and kept quiet.

Lapis continues, “Probably the second actually, but that doesn’t matter. I tried to call for any warm water in the vicinity, but all I got were snow and cold ones, and it only trapped me even more…But hey, at least I didn’t backed out on your dare.” Try as she might to keep a smile, she had a death grip on the parka and her face dimmed before lowering her head, her lower lip trembling as she bit on it; Jasper noticed all of these.

“Sorry.”

Lapis lifts her head halfway upon hearing the apology. “Why are you apologizing?”

Jasper’s breaks their eye contact. “W-Well as soon as I saw you, I just made fun of you. Humiliated you, even. I was only thinking about how I’m going to get back on you after making fun of me. I never should’ve made that stupid dare.”

“But if I didn’t took your dare, you’re just going to mock me either way.” There’s a bit of bitterness in Lapis’ tone that caused the guilt to swell up inside Jasper.

“Forget about the dare! Things like that is the reason why Homeworld messed up in the first place!”

“A dare messed up Homeworld? What are you-“

“Nothing! Nothing. Just, shut up. I’ll even delete that picture I took of you.”

“You really should delete that.” Lapis chuckles. “But what’s that about Homeworld again?”

“ARGH!! JUST FORGET EVERYTHING I SAID!”

Lapis guffaws in Jasper’s arms, the latter wincing and blushes at her miserable attempt to lighten the mood. Yet somehow, it all worked out in the end…right?

 

* * *

Jasper had already let Lapis walk on her own, as per the latter’s request. Halfway up through the stairs of the Crystal Gem’s porch, the two saw Steven and Pearl exiting through the front door. Steven sees them instantly and runs to them.

“Lapis! Jasper!” Steven stops to hug Lapis, and then he faced Jasper. “Is your tongue okay now?”

“Yeah.”

“Well,” Pearl intervenes, standing behind Steven with hands clasped in front of her, “I’m glad you’re both okay. We were all starting to worry since neither of you were returning home, even though it’s getting late.” Jasper and Lapis exchanged worried looks as if to say _don’t tell her about it_. Unfortunately for them, it did not go unnoticed by the pale Gem. Fortunately, she had a more important matter to attend to.

“Were you able to get the things I listed for the two of you?” Pearl asks, concern making its way on her face.

“Yeah, got them right…here…” Jasper gave a smug look but it dissipated instantaneously when she tried to grab for heavy plastic bags she expected to be on her arms. She ends up grabbing open air.

Pearl taps her foot as she waits for the burly Gem to give her what she wanted; when Jasper’s frantic searching was fruitless, she sighs as she slides her hand from her gem towards her eyes and said, “This is what Garnet was telling me about.”

“Whatever. I’ll just run back to the pole where I left it.” Jasper jeers.

“Pole? What pole?” Pearl asks and a hand flies over Jasper’s mouth.

“W-What’s this about a pole?” Lapis sweats as she tries to concoct a lie, “Look, we left it in a storage place and somehow we forgot to get it back. Everyone makes mistakes! Ok? Ok. Bye!” Lapis attempts to tugs the husky Gem away from Pearl but a hand stops her before she can dash away.

“Here.” Pearl picks up Lapis’ hand and placed a couple of bills on it. “I’m sure the ingredients might be spoiled as of now, regardless where you left it,” Lapis gulps but Pearl paid no mind to it, “So here’s some extra bill you could use in case the need to replace the spoiled ones arise. Steven will be going with you two this time.”

“Hurray! It’s been so long since last time I went to the grocery store. Let’s go Lapis! Jasper!” Steven pulls Lapis as he runs down the stairs, Jasper in tow by the water Gem’s grip.

“Be careful out there!” Pearl’s warning fades out as the trio went further away.

 

* * *

Back at the scene of the crime; Jasper paces back and forth near the pole where she and Lapis had gotten stuck into, the latter standing beside the same pole and hugging Steven close.

“I’m sure this is where I left it!” Jasper clenches at her own hair as she continues her pace.

“Well, it’s not here.” Boredom etched on Lapis’s face. “You really should be paying attention to your surroundings.”

“Well, if you weren’t so busy falling asleep while your tongue got stuck, maybe we don’t have to go the grocery again!”

“Urgh! Whatever! Let’s just go buy those things again!”

“Last time I checked, I was the only one who bought those things in the first place.”

“And you were also the last one to lose them. Good job.”

A low rumble threatens to escape from Jasper's mouth and Steven decided to step in. “Uh, guys…”

The two stopped their bickering and looks at Steven.

“It’s okay if you lost them. We could just buy a set of new ones! But the shop will be closing in 10 minutes, so we really should be going right now.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, Steven. Why don’t just the two of us go and leave that forgetful Gem behind?” Lapis sticks her tongue out to Jasper and starts walking away.

Jasper follows after them, not one to give up on this battle. “Careful. Brats like you might get yourself stuck again.”

“Oh, please.” A smile crept up on the blue Gem’s face.

She closes her eyes and brushes through the coldness of the snow, something she’ll have to learn to surpass and manipulate later; for now she’s simply thankful for the warmth emanating from the boy, and a newly kindled one from an unexpected source trailing behind her.

 

**Author's Note:**

> This is actually my very first proper fanfic (what is a proper fanfic even in the first place??) after a decade--or just my first one at all //pretends my old ones doesn't exist-- so I was worried that I might stop trying to finish this and go back to drawing instead (which doesn't do justice either). 
> 
> Anyways, a lot of works and writers inspired me in one way or another, so I'm just glad I did get to write and finish this. Also, forgive any errors that you see. Comments and helpful criticism are v much appreciated.


End file.
